His chest ached, his breathing had become heavier, and his arms were beginning to tremble from the repeated impacts.
Nevertheless, he forced himself upright.
Felix’s grin gradually faded.
"You’re still getting up?" he asked, sounding genuinely irritated.
Vincent wiped the blood from his mouth and smiled faintly. "What can I say? I’m stubborn."
Felix clicked his tongue. "Then I’ll just have to hit you harder."
He disappeared again.
But this time, Vincent didn’t attempt to follow his movements with his eyes. Instead, he remained still. He had already noticed something else about Felix’s fighting style.
Whenever Felix attacked from a considerable distance, he preferred approaching from an angle that allowed him to strike Vincent’s exposed side.
And because Vincent had been repeatedly attempting to turn toward him, Felix had grown accustomed to exploiting that reaction.
Vincent decided to use that habit against him. He deliberately lowered his left arm, leaving his ribs exposed.
Felix noticed immediately.
"Idiot!"
A powerful gust swept across the courtyard as Felix accelerated toward the opening.
Vincent waited.
His instincts screamed at him to defend himself, but he forced his body to remain still until the last possible moment.
Then he activated Bone Hardening and twisted his torso.
Felix’s fist smashed into his reinforced ribs.
"GH!"
Pain exploded through Vincent’s side. However, instead of retreating, Vincent stepped forward and grabbed Felix’s attacking wrist.
For the first time since the battle began, Slipstream’s expression changed.
"What?!"
Vincent tightened his grip."Got you!"
He activated Impact Amplification and drove his free fist toward Felix’s face.
BOOM!
The amplified punch connected with Felix’s cheek, producing a heavy impact that sent the Villain staggering backward. Blood sprayed from Felix’s mouth as he stumbled several steps before regaining his balance.
Vincent attempted to follow up, but Felix immediately accelerated away, escaping before another strike could land.
For several seconds, neither man moved. Felix slowly touched his bleeding cheekHis expression darkened.
"You little bastard," he growled, staring at the blood on his fingers. "You actually hit me."
Nevertheless, a satisfied smile appeared on his face.
"Yeah," Vincent replied, raising his fists again. "And I’m planning to do it again."
Felix’s face twisted with anger. "Let’s see you try!"
He launched himself forward with even greater speed. This time, however, Vincent was no longer fighting blindly.
He understood that attempting to chase Felix’s movements was pointless. Instead, he needed to predict where his opponent would attack and force him into situations where acceleration became less useful.
Vincent deliberately moved toward the narrower section of the courtyard, positioning himself between a dumpster and the brick wall.
Felix followed immediately. A rapid series of blows struck Vincent’s arms and shoulders as he defended himself, but the confined space limited the directions from which Felix could approach.
Vincent endured the punishment while watching his opponent’s footwork.
Then Felix accelerated toward his exposed right side.
Vincent suddenly stepped backward, allowing the attack to pass in front of him.
Felix attempted to adjust his direction, but his momentum carried him farther than intended.
Vincent seized the opportunity. He grabbed the back of Felix’s jacket and violently pulled him toward the nearby dumpster.
CLANG!
Felix slammed shoulder-first into the metal container, producing a deafening crash. Before he could recover, Vincent activated Impact Amplification and drove a reinforced punch into his abdomen.
"GAH!"
Felix doubled over, coughing violently.
Vincent immediately followed with another punch to his jaw. The impact sent Felix sprawling across the concrete.
For a moment, Vincent thought the battle was finished. Then Felix rolled sideways and sprang to his feet, his expression contorted with fury.
"You think you’ve won?!" Felix shouted, wiping blood from his mouth. "I’ll show you what real speed looks like!"
Flux Energy surged through his body.
The air around Felix stirred as he lowered his stance.
Vincent’s expression became serious. He could tell that the next attack would be considerably faster than anything Felix had demonstrated previously.
His own Flux reserves were nearly exhausted. He wouldn’t survive many more exchanges.
Felix suddenly accelerated. His figure blurred across the courtyard, closing the distance in an instant.
Vincent barely managed to raise his arms before a devastating punch struck his guard. The force drove him backward, his shoes scraping against the concrete.Felix immediately circled toward his flank, preparing another strike.
But Vincent had anticipated exactly that. Rather than attempting to turn and defend, he suddenly dropped his center of gravity and stepped directly into Felix’s approach.
The movement brought them dangerously close. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
Felix’s eyes widened as he realized his acceleration had carried him into Vincent’s reach.
Vincent activated Bone Hardening and slammed his shoulder into Felix’s chest.
THUD!
The collision disrupted Felix’s balance. Before Felix could retreat, Vincent grabbedhis jacket with one hand and pulled him forward.
"You’re fast," Vincent growled through clenched teeth, drawing back his fist. "But you’re not untouchable!"
He poured his remaining strength into Impact Amplification.
BOOOOM!
His fist smashed into Felix’s abdomen. The amplified impact lifted Felix off his feet and sent him crashing backward across the courtyard.
Felix struck the concrete, rolled several times, and finally collided with the brick wall.
A cloud of dust rose around him. Vincent remained standing for several seconds, breathing heavily as the last traces of Flux Energy faded from his body.
His arms trembled, his ribs ached, and blood continued trickling from his split lip.
Nevertheless, he had won. Felix Granger lay unconscious near the wall, completely defeated.
Vincent slowly approached and confirmed that the Villain was still breathing.
Only then did he allow himself to relax.
"Damn," Vincent muttered, lowering himself onto a nearby wooden pallet. "That was a lot harder than I expected."
He had possessed three supernatural abilities against Felix’s single power, yet the experienced Villain had nearly beaten him through superior speed and combat familiarity.
The encounter had taught Vincent an important lesson. Having more superpowers didn’t automatically make someone a better fighter.
Experience, timing, judgment, and proper energy management mattered just as much. As Vincent sat recovering his breath, a familiar translucent blue window suddenly appeared before his eyes.
[DING!]
[Villain Defeated!]
[Target: Felix Granger]
[Alias: Slipstream][Superhuman Rank: Rank 1]
[Villain Assimilation Conditions Satisfied.]
[Innate Superpower Detected: Kinetic Acceleration.]
[The Villain Assimilation System has identified an eligible supernatural ability.]
[Would you like to assimilate Kinetic Acceleration?]
[YES / NO]
Vincent stared at the notification.
Despite the pain coursing through his battered body, a delighted grin slowly spread across his face.